


it's (not) unusual

by amsves



Category: Free!
Genre: Best Friends, Confusion, Feelings, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, High ☆ Speed!, M/M, Middle School
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-05
Updated: 2017-06-05
Packaged: 2018-11-09 14:25:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11106435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amsves/pseuds/amsves
Summary: Things are normal at school, but Asahimighthave a problem with touching people. Well, person, specifically. And it's not really a problem. To him, at least.





	it's (not) unusual

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "It's Not Unusual" by Tom Jones just because why _not_ make the title a meme? 
> 
> If you're looking for the _actual_ recommended listening, it's "Good Times" by All Time Low.  
>  "New Life" by Chase the Chariot would also be a good option if All Time Low's not your speed. (get it? high speed?)

Eating lunch with Kisumi, Haruka, and Ikuya has become a daily thing, but that doesn’t make it any easier or any less weird. Invariably, three things will take place over the course of the meal: Kisumi will say something perverted, Asahi will argue with Ikuya, and Haruka will coolly observe the whole ordeal without so much as a change in expression. It’s the same thing, day in and day out, but Asahi finds he doesn’t mind. It’s nice, the routine; it’s comfortable. He likes being comfortable. 

He doesn’t like it enough to trade his hard wooden desk chair for Kisumi’s lap, however. 

“Of course there’s room, Asa-chan! It’s right here,” Kisumi singsongs with a wink as he pats his lap. 

“No way!” Asahi snaps, dragging a chair up next to Ikuya and squeezing in on the end of the desk. They’re sitting so close that their shoulders bump as he settles in. “You’re such a perv.”

“So mean, Asa-chan,” Kisumi pouts, poking at his bento. “I’m just offering you a more comfortable seating option!” 

“Maybe you should accept,” Ikuya grumbles into his rice. “Then we wouldn’t be so squished together every day.”

Asahi cuffs Ikuya in the head before turning back to Kisumi, throwing his hands up in apology. “I’m just not a touchy person, man! Personal space, and all that.”

“Huh?” Kisumi responds, unconvinced. “But you don’t have a problem touching Ikuya-kun! Oh, and that’s another thing--you call Ikuya-kun by his first name, without honorifics!”

Asahi flushes. “It’s a club thing! What’s so weird about that, huh?”

Kisumi pokes at Asahi with his chopstick. “Is the touching thing a ‘club thing,’ too,  _ Asa-chan _ ?”

Asahi’s complexion could rival Kisumi’s hair color as he stutters out a retort. “That’s … that’s … whatever. Let’s just eat.”

“Yes, good idea,” Haruka agrees quietly. “The other kids are staring at you.”

“Huh?!”

But Haruka offers no further comment, and Asahi grudgingly digs into his bento. 

He pushes the conversation at lunch out of his mind until swim club that day. They’re doing relay practice, as always; Natsuya-senpai thinks they’ve really got a shot at regionals if they could just get those pesky starts down to a science without someone going too early. Asahi knows they’ll make it, and that number flashing on Nao-senpai’s stopwatch is just further confirmation.  _ 3:41:26.  _ Only seconds slower than national times. 

Excitement bubbles up in Asahi and threatens to erupt if he doesn’t  _ do something _ to celebrate, so he jumps and throws an arm around Ikuya’s shoulders. “Did you see that? Did you see how fast we are? We’re totally going to win and go to Nationals and then make the Olympic team even though we’re still in middle school-”

“Calm down, Baka-asahi,” Ikuya interrupts, but the insult’s lacking in its usual bite. “You’re rambling.”

“Sorry!” Asahi replies, not very sorry at all, and ruffles Ikuya’s sopping hair. It’s soft, like down feather, despite being full of chlorine. “I’m just so excited, y’know? What if we really made it with the four of us?” Asahi grabs Ikuya’s shoulders and shakes him. “Wouldn’t that be so  _ cool _ ?”

Ikuya looks away. “Sure.”

“Hey! Don’t be such a downer!” Asahi starts, before Nao-senpai places a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. 

On that victorious note, Nao-senpai calls practice five minutes early, and the first-years clean up. Asahi’s gathering kickboards when Makoto asks him, “Why’re you only so friendly with Ikuya?”

Asahi blushes a little and scratches the back of his head. “Funny you should ask. Well, I have a feeling that Haruka wouldn’t let me hug him, anyways.”

“Don’t call me Haruka,” Asahi hears Haruka mutter behind him. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Asahi waves a hand to Haruka, who sighs. “Anyways, to answer your question, I dunno. I kinda just don’t think about it?” With that, he stands up, and walks to the storage room. “See you tomorrow, Makoto!” 

Ikuya’s waiting for him in the locker rooms, mostly changed already. He’s fastening the top button on his shirt when Asahi throws the door open, and scoffs. “Can’t you do anything without being so dramatic?”

“Sure I can! Why, you got a problem?” Asahi’s got one fist curled in Ikuya’s shirt, but it’s not firm, and Ikuya’s smiling just a bit at the corners of his mouth. They’re good.

Asahi changes quickly and they start for home. It’s a nice evening, with a brilliant orange sun reflecting on the water as they walk. Suddenly, Asahi stops. “Ikuya! Look!” He points at some dark blob over on a fence, and Ikuya sighs.

“Asahi, that’s a stray cat.”

“Yeah, isn’t it neat? I wanna pet it.” 

Ikuya spares a glance at Asahi’s face and groans internally. He’s got this  _ gleam _ in his eyes that says  _ ‘I’m going to do this and you can’t stop me.’ _ “They’re always around here.”

“Yeah, but isn’t this one cute?” Asahi grabs Ikuya’s wrist. “Let’s go!”

“Where are we--ah!” Ikuya’s question is cut off as Asahi starts running towards the cat, with him in tow. The grip on his wrist is steel, and there’s a blush rising in his cheeks, and Ikuya finds that he doesn’t mind  _ too _ much.

Asahi’s still Baka-asahi to him, though.

-

After eating a hearty dinner with his parents, Asahi retires to his room for the night. He turns out the light and tries to sleep, but finds himself staring at the ceiling. There’s nothing  _ wrong _ with him, is there? He doesn’t think so. Sure, maybe he isn’t the smartest kid in their class, but he’s pretty alright, he thinks. And maybe he’s kinda …  _ touchy _ around Ikuya, but that’s normal, too! They’re best friends, after all. 

So, yeah, Kisumi’s and Makoto’s weird questions are probably nothing.

_ But what if they aren’t? _ whispers a voice in the back of his mind, before Asahi forcefully squashes it back down. 

“Nope, nothing weird here,” he reassures himself out loud. “I’m a totally normal guy!” 

“Asahi, be quiet!” his sister shouts from the other room, and for once, Asahi listens. 

He sleeps well enough, but all too soon his alarm is blaring in his ear and it’s time to get up. He dresses in a daze, as usual; brushes his teeth; attempts to tame his wild hair, to no avail; and shoves a piece of toast in his mouth before dashing out the door. 

He sprints down the street to Ikuya’s house and knocks on the door, breathless. Ikuya opens it, tells his mother goodbye, and joins him en route to school.

They meet Kisumi on the way, which is unusual. “Good morning!” the cheery boy calls, waving from far away. “I have class duty today, so I’m early!” he fills them in as they catch up to him. “Want to walk together this morning?”

Ikuya shrugs, so Asahi accepts the offer. They walk nonchalantly, chatting about this and that, when all of a sudden Kisumi stops and whistles. “Ooh, look at that girl!”

The girl in question is wearing the uniform for their school, but she’s clearly a third year, both by the color of her tie and her … assets. Kisumi may be charming to older women and kids alike, but with this girl, he doesn’t have a chance. 

Asahi and Ikuya scoff simultaneously. Kisumi, oblivious, continues his babbling. “Isn’t she cute? I bet she’s a tsundere. Y’know, the kind of girl who ‘doesn’t like you or anything,  _ baka _ !’ She totally looks like the kind of girl who would say that. What do you two think?”

Ikuya shrugs, again. “Eh,” Asahi answers. 

“ _ Eh _ ?!” Kisumi echoes, shocked. “She’s gorgeous!”

It’s Asahi’s turn to shrug. “Y’know, I thought I’d be a lot more interested in girls when I got to middle school, but I’m just … not, y’know? Ikuya?”

“How would  _ I _ know how  _ you _ feel? Baka-asahi.”

“Hey, shut up, would you?” Asahi shouts, drawing a few stares from passersby. 

“If you didn’t want my opinion, you shouldn’t have asked. Baka-asahi.”

“Shut  _ up _ , Ikuya!”

Their bickering continues all the way to school, and up until the bell rings. Their mouths clamp shut, and Sensei begins the lesson. 

Asahi tries to pay attention, he really does, but the sunlight’s streaming in through the windows at the  _ perfect _ angle to catch the strands of Ikuya’s hair in a way that makes it look like he’s got a halo, and Asahi’s gone.  _ Ikuya’s kinda pretty like a girl, huh,  _ he thinks to himself absentmindedly,  _ And his hair is soft like a girl’s, too. I bet that girl Kisumi was crowing about earlier doesn’t have hair  _ half _ as soft as Ikuya’s. And sometimes he blushes like one. And his voice is so high and cute, like a girl’s, too. Who needs girls when you have Ikuya? _

_ Huh _ , Asahi thinks, sitting up straight.  _ Maybe I don’t like girls because I like Ikuya.  _

There’s absolutely no chance of Asahi concentrating today after coming to  _ that _ realization, and it shows. He fidgets all through lunch, and can barely look Ikuya in the eye. Thankfully, there’s no club today, so he packs his bag as quickly as possible when the bell rings and dashes out the door. 

He’s not fast enough, however. Ikuya catches him too quickly and falls into step beside him, like always. “Asahi? Is something wrong?”

Asahi keeps his eyes straight ahead. “W-what? Why would something be wrong?” Is he sweating? Oh, no, he’s sweating.  _ Damn it, Asahi, keep it together! There’s no reason to be nervous! It’ll look suspicious! _

“Well, you were kinda weird today at lunch, and you sprinted out of the classroom without waiting for me, or Haruka, or Makoto.” Ikuya stops walking, forcing Asahi to stop as well. “So, I’ll ask again. Is something wrong?”

“ _ I kinda want you to be my girlfriend _ ,” Asahi blurts.

Ikuya turns the color of a tomato, and he looks away. “That’s mean, Baka-asahi. You could’ve just said you didn’t want to talk about it. I wouldn’t have pried.” Ikuya starts walking again, but Asahi grabs his wrist as he passes.

“No, really! Your hair’s really soft--”

“That’s-that’s just I use conditioner!” Ikuya splutters.

“--And you blush when I say something funny, which is really cute--”

“I do not!”

“--And your voice is really high and cute--”

“I-it’ll get lower!”

“And you’re just really pretty and I like you and I want to do normal dating stuff with you and hold your hand and go to movies and maybe kiss you.” Asahi’s out of breath from spilling his feelings all in one go, which leaves awkward silence for Ikuya to fill.

“O-oh…” he responds lamely.

Asahi waves his hands frantically. “I-it’s okay! You don’t have to tell me right away or anything. I just … I didn’t want to lie to you anymore.”

Ikuya nods, and keeps walking. Asahi’s smile falls, but he trails after.

-

Ikuya can’t eat dinner. 

It’s kobe beef, his favorite, served with rice and steamed vegetables, but his stomach’s churning and his palms are sweating and he’s so  _ confused _ that he takes two bites and excuses himself from the table. Natsuya follows him out of the dining room and into his room, and closes the door behind him. “What’s wrong, Ikuya?”

Ikuya flops face-down onto his bed. “Leave me alone, nii-sama.”

Natsuya doesn’t, however. He just takes a seat next to Ikuya and rolls him over. “Tell me what’s wrong.  _ Please _ , Ikuya.”

Ikuya sighs, and sits up. “Asahi,” he starts, but the words ‘confessed to me today’ get stuck in his throat.

Natsuya pats his shoulder with a knowing smile. “Oh? So you’ve finally realized you have a crush on Asahi?”

_ What? _

His shock must show on his face, because Natsuya pulls him in for a hug. “It’s okay, Ikuya. I’ll support you, no matter what! That’s what big brothers are for!”

He leaves, and Ikuya’s left alone in his room with his thoughts.

He doesn’t sleep a wink, and leaves almost an hour earlier than normal so he won’t have to walk with Asahi today. At school, he takes a moment to gather his thoughts in their empty classroom. He’s nearly steeled himself when Asahi throws open the classroom door.  _ Too early! _

“H-hi,” Ikuya stutters, standing up with a start. 

“H-hi,” Asahi echoes, still in the doorway. 

“Um,” Ikuya chokes out, “Can we talk?”

The classroom is empty aside from the two of them at the moment, but classmates could start arriving at any moment, so Ikuya guides the two of them to a sakura tree right outside of the pool. “So, uh,” he starts, before clearing his throat and trying again, “I thought about what you said yesterday … and I want it.”

Asahi blinks. “Huh?”

“The hand-holding,” Ikuya clarifies, feeling sillier by the minute, “And the dates, and the movies.”  _ And the kissing, maybe,  _ he thinks to himself.  _ But only maybe _ . 

Asahi’s face remains blank for a minute longer, and Ikuya’s stomach drops, before he breaks into a wide grin. “Well then, let’s start right now!” Asahi grabs Ikuya’s hand and laces their fingers together. “Let’s go get icecream!”

“What about school?” Ikuya protests, and Asahi’s grin fades slightly.

“Oh, yeah. After school!”

“We have club,” Ikuya reminds the other boy, and the grin fades a little more. “After?”

“Sure thing!” Asahi pecks Ikuya on the cheek. “I’ll be looking forward to it all day!” He turns toward the classroom, fingers still laced with Ikuya’s. “Let’s go back!”

With his free hand, Ikuya touches his cheek where Asahi’s lips had been just a moment before, and allows himself a small smile. 

That day at lunch, Kisumi still says something perverted, and Asahi and Ikuya still bicker, and Haruka still watches silently, but there’s one crucial difference: Ikuya and Asahi hold hands the whole time. 

**Author's Note:**

> talk to me at senpai-san.tumblr.com
> 
> i just watched high∆speed; free starting days or whatever the fucklong title is called and i enjoyed the gay 10/10


End file.
